As part of every home inspection, I open up the electric panel to see what’s going on inside. I’m looking for any problems with the wiring or panel itself. One problem I come across quite often is double tapped neutrals. There seems to be confusion surrounding this...

Lights generate a lot of heat when they are in use. This heat can be a safety hazard in certain situations where recessed lighting is used. Understanding the difference between IC rated and non-IC rated recessed lighting will help you identify possible fire hazards in...

Last week, I introduced you to the GFCI (sometimes shortened to GFI) outlet. I talked about how they function, why they are necessary, and where they should be located. To summarize, they are safety devices designed to prevent fatal electrocution accidents and should...

For this week and next week’s blogs, I will be looking at GFCI outlets. I will discuss how they work, why they are needed, where they are needed, and how you can test GFCI outlets in your home. Before we jump into GFCI outlets, we need to talk a little bit about...

In my first post, “Aluminum Wiring: Why Is It A Concern?”, I talked about the differences between aluminum and copper wiring, the problems associated with aluminum wiring , and the solution for those problems. In this post, I continue by talking about...

Aluminum wiring is a controversial subject in the real estate world. I often have clients ask questions like, “Is aluminum wiring safe?” or “Does it need to be replaced?”. My short answer is yes it is safe, and no it does not need to be replaced. However, I need to...

COLIN WILSON

Colin is a Certified Professional Home Inspector as well as a licensed MS Residential Builder. He has been remodeling homes since he was 14 and even built his own house by hand from the ground up. Colin is also the owner of Wilson Home Inspections.